Commission convenes working group aimed at accelerating airport expansion

The Airport Advisory Commission has formed a working group to look into possible ways the city can support accelerating the expansion of the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

The commission at its July 12 meeting voted unanimously to form the working group. Commissioner Jonathan Coon will chair the working group, which also will include commissioners Doyle Valdez and Patrick Rose, as well as interested members of the community.

“I’d love to see if we can find a way to support the airport to grow faster,” Coon said. “It feels like if we don’t expand the airport faster, fares are just going to continue to increase, and it’s going to become progressively more unaffordable for people in Austin to travel. We’d love to understand what we can do – whether it’s with our Council members or elsewhere in the city – to support accelerating the expansion of the airport.”

Construction on a three-gate expansion of the Barbara Jordan Terminal began this summer. The project will include more than 80,000 square feet of space, including three new gates, two relocated gates, dining areas, additional restrooms, a children’s play area, family and nursing rooms, and a mezzanine.

The expansion comes at a time of record-breaking traffic at the airport and nationwide shortages of trained air traffic control staff. Those factors have contributed to concerns about whether the airport’s safety protocols have kept up with the increased pace.

In a service update also held at the commission’s July 12 meeting, airport Assistant Director Jamy Kazanoff noted service updates that included the addition of Copa Airlines, a new American Airlines route to Santa Fe, and Delta routes to Orlando and Las Vegas.

In response to a question, Kazanoff said the Delta routes may correspond to an increase in the average number of daily flights in October. Austin typically experiences a post-summer dip in flights around mid-August and September, she said, but the number is likely to rise again in October.

“October is going to be a very, very busy month for Austin,” Kazanoff said.

The airport in March logged its fifth-busiest month ever.

“That’s a lot of flights, and we’re going to have to rely pretty heavily on the (Federal Aviation Administration),” said commission Chair Wendy Todd. “And, as we know, there are leadership and staffing issues – maybe not in Austin, but certainly nationally.”

That raises concerns, Todd said, “about the capacity of the airport to manage all of those flights.”

The working group will convene between now and the commission’s Aug. 9 meeting, with the goal of having an update by that time. The community member spots will be filled by individuals who have already expressed interest in participating.

Photo made available through a Creative Commons license.

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